Publication
Amsterdam Meulenhoff © 2023
ISBN
9789029097963
Language
Collections
Series
Description
Twenty-five-year-old Takako has enjoyed a relatively easy existence, until the day her boyfriend Hideaki, the man she expected to wed, casually announces he's been cheating on her and is marrying the other woman. Suddenly, Takako's life is in freefall. She loses her job, her friends, and her acquaintances, and spirals into a deep depression. In the depths of her despair, she receives a call from her distant uncle Satoru. An unusual man who has always pursued something of an unconventional life, especially after his wife Momoko left him out of the blue five years earlier, Satoru runs a second-hand bookshop in Jimbocho, Tokyo's famous book district. Takako once looked down upon Satoru's life. Now, she reluctantly accepts his offer of the tiny room above the bookshop rent-free in exchange for helping out at the store. The move is temporary, until she can get back on her feet. But in the months that follow, Takako surprises herself when she develops a passion for Japanese literature, becomes a regular at a local coffee shop where she makes new friends, and eventually meets a young editor from a nearby publishing house who's going through his own messy breakup. But just as she begins to find joy again, Hideaki reappears, forcing Takako to rely once again on her uncle, whose own life has begun to unravel. Together, these seeming opposites work to understand each other and themselves as they continue to share the wisdom they've gained in the bookshop.… (more)
Genres
Subjects
User reviews
LibraryThing member CatherineHsu
Actual Rating: 3.2
“Heartbroken city person escapes to a small village to run a little bookstore” is probably one of my favorite tropes ever; you just know that the environment is going to be so cozy and gentle, the people the main character meets are all going to be so mellow and kind-hearted,
This was no different. The story follows Takako, who finds out she was "the other woman" and her boyfriend is getting married. Heartbroken, she moves into her uncle's used bookstore and is slowly drawn into the stories around her as she gets to know every one of the unusual customers who drop by the store.
I really did enjoy the first half a lot, but it felt like time was flying by too fast, like we were reading a short story that needed to cover a lot of ground in little time where the characters were archetypes for broader moral lessons. Still, I really liked learning about the bookstore's history, and it's always really beautiful to read about a character recovering from emotional scars.
However, the book lost me when the first part ended. The second half of the novel turns instead to the sudden return of Satoru's long-lost wife Momoko and Satoru's relationship with her. This transition was really jarring to me and I struggled to connect to the characters (even though they were the same). The story itself just isn’t as interesting or unpredictable or comforting, and I felt like it could have taken place the same time as the first part in the background as a subplot, instead of as a second part where it completely takes over.
Overall, I still think this was pretty cute and it would’ve been even better if it was consistent and one story, instead of two.
“Heartbroken city person escapes to a small village to run a little bookstore” is probably one of my favorite tropes ever; you just know that the environment is going to be so cozy and gentle, the people the main character meets are all going to be so mellow and kind-hearted,
Show More
and best of all, you’re going to get some really life-changing book quotes.This was no different. The story follows Takako, who finds out she was "the other woman" and her boyfriend is getting married. Heartbroken, she moves into her uncle's used bookstore and is slowly drawn into the stories around her as she gets to know every one of the unusual customers who drop by the store.
I really did enjoy the first half a lot, but it felt like time was flying by too fast, like we were reading a short story that needed to cover a lot of ground in little time where the characters were archetypes for broader moral lessons. Still, I really liked learning about the bookstore's history, and it's always really beautiful to read about a character recovering from emotional scars.
However, the book lost me when the first part ended. The second half of the novel turns instead to the sudden return of Satoru's long-lost wife Momoko and Satoru's relationship with her. This transition was really jarring to me and I struggled to connect to the characters (even though they were the same). The story itself just isn’t as interesting or unpredictable or comforting, and I felt like it could have taken place the same time as the first part in the background as a subplot, instead of as a second part where it completely takes over.
Overall, I still think this was pretty cute and it would’ve been even better if it was consistent and one story, instead of two.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookczuk
Really, really loved this book. The author managed to capture so many elements and actions of book lovers, and tell a simple, real feeling story. Some of my favorite books emerge from the minds and pens of Japanese authors, who so often write small (aka short/slim) novels, that are like the
Also: winner cover.
Show More
Tardis-- bigger on the inside. Have recommended it to a bunch of folks.Also: winner cover.
Show Less
LibraryThing member m_k_m
Too slight to have much of a lasting effect, Days at the Morisaki Bookshop does at least, in its very brief page count, capture something of the aimlessness of those post-university years, and the escape books can offer when there isn't much else going on. The main thing I'll take from it is that I
Show More
really should visit Jimbocho if I ever make it to Tokyo. Show Less
LibraryThing member oddandbookish
I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher (Harper Perennial) for promotional purposes.
At just under 150 pages, this book was short but still so powerful!
The book is separated into 2 parts. The first part focuses on the main character, Takako, and her life working at the bookshop,
Some may find the simplicity of the story hard to connect with, but it worked for me. There was something really beautiful and understated about it. This is a translated Japanese story, so it can feel quite different from an American novel.
I also loved learning about Jimbocho, Japan’s book district (where the story takes place). I never knew this place existed but it sounds amazing.
Since this is a book about books, I have to share a quote I loved about the magic of secondhand books. Takako ponders, “I happened to find a pressed flower someone had left as a bookmark. As I inhaled the scent of the long-ago-faded flower, I wondered about the person who had put it there. Who in the world was she? When did she live? What was she feeling? It’s only in secondhand books that you can savor encounters like this, connections that transcend time” (pg. 37). I couldn’t agree more!
Overall, this was a gem of a book! If you’re looking for something quick and a little different to read, consider picking this one up.
At just under 150 pages, this book was short but still so powerful!
The book is separated into 2 parts. The first part focuses on the main character, Takako, and her life working at the bookshop,
Show More
which I found very charming and cute. If you’re a bookworm and a bibliophile, this part will definitely resonate with you! The second part focuses on the Takako’s relationships with others. This part was more emotional. I enjoyed both parts because they each offered something different. Some may find the simplicity of the story hard to connect with, but it worked for me. There was something really beautiful and understated about it. This is a translated Japanese story, so it can feel quite different from an American novel.
I also loved learning about Jimbocho, Japan’s book district (where the story takes place). I never knew this place existed but it sounds amazing.
Since this is a book about books, I have to share a quote I loved about the magic of secondhand books. Takako ponders, “I happened to find a pressed flower someone had left as a bookmark. As I inhaled the scent of the long-ago-faded flower, I wondered about the person who had put it there. Who in the world was she? When did she live? What was she feeling? It’s only in secondhand books that you can savor encounters like this, connections that transcend time” (pg. 37). I couldn’t agree more!
Overall, this was a gem of a book! If you’re looking for something quick and a little different to read, consider picking this one up.
Show Less
LibraryThing member JesseekaG
I received this arc in exchange for an honest . This book is translated from the Japanese version and whilst I was reading this book it gave off cozy reading vibes. However it did take me a while to finish as there wasn't much going on to keep picking it back up.
LibraryThing member srms.reads
3.5⭐
“Human beings are full of contradictions.”
Twenty-five-year-old Takako takes up residence for a few months in her uncle Satoru’s second-hand bookshop in Jimbicho, Tokyo in the wake of her breakup with her cad of a boyfriend/ coworker and her subsequent resignation. Depressed and
The narrative is divided into two segments the first of which focuses on Takano’s journey and the second segment, set a year later, revolves around her uncle and his wife Momoko whose sudden return five years after she left him has him seeking the answers to several unanswered questions. Her aunt’s return and their evolving friendship also encourage Takako to reconsider her own priorities.
“No matter where you go, or how many books you read, you still know nothing, you haven’t seen anything. And that’s life. We live our lives trying to find our way.”
Touching upon themes of family, friendship, new beginnings and most importantly the transformative power of books, this is a sweet, simple story that would appeal to book lovers and bibliophiles. I really liked the premise of Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa (translated by Eric Ozawa), and loved the descriptions of the Jimbocho Book Town (brought back some fond memories of College Street /”Boi Para” of Kolkata, India) and the literary references. The author also references the Kanda Used Book Festival, the largest annual event held in Kanda's Jimbocho secondhand book district that started in 1960. The narrative is evenly paced and compact but I thought the writing (or maybe the translation) was a tad choppy and lacking in depth. Though I didn’t enjoy the second segment of the narrative as much as the first, overall I didn't dislike this short novel its totality.
“Human beings are full of contradictions.”
Twenty-five-year-old Takako takes up residence for a few months in her uncle Satoru’s second-hand bookshop in Jimbicho, Tokyo in the wake of her breakup with her cad of a boyfriend/ coworker and her subsequent resignation. Depressed and
Show More
unemployed, Takako is glad for the room above the Morisaki Bookshop to hide from the rest of the world even though she doesn’t quite enjoy reading. Surrounded by towering stacks of second-hand books and people who love reading, Takako eventually finds herself opening up to new experiences, making friends in the community, forging a bond with her uncle and finding joy, inspiration and hope in reading.The narrative is divided into two segments the first of which focuses on Takano’s journey and the second segment, set a year later, revolves around her uncle and his wife Momoko whose sudden return five years after she left him has him seeking the answers to several unanswered questions. Her aunt’s return and their evolving friendship also encourage Takako to reconsider her own priorities.
“No matter where you go, or how many books you read, you still know nothing, you haven’t seen anything. And that’s life. We live our lives trying to find our way.”
Touching upon themes of family, friendship, new beginnings and most importantly the transformative power of books, this is a sweet, simple story that would appeal to book lovers and bibliophiles. I really liked the premise of Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa (translated by Eric Ozawa), and loved the descriptions of the Jimbocho Book Town (brought back some fond memories of College Street /”Boi Para” of Kolkata, India) and the literary references. The author also references the Kanda Used Book Festival, the largest annual event held in Kanda's Jimbocho secondhand book district that started in 1960. The narrative is evenly paced and compact but I thought the writing (or maybe the translation) was a tad choppy and lacking in depth. Though I didn’t enjoy the second segment of the narrative as much as the first, overall I didn't dislike this short novel its totality.
Show Less
LibraryThing member KallieGrace
Cute and contemplative, short and quiet. Not much bookshop content aside from it being the backdrop of the family story played out here.
LibraryThing member richardderus
Rating: a generous 4* of five
The Publisher Says: The moving international sensation about new beginnings, human connection, and the joy of reading.
Hidden in Jimbocho, Tokyo, is a booklover's paradise. On a quiet corner in an old wooden building lies a shop filled with hundreds of second-hand
Twenty-five-year-old Takako has never liked reading, although the Morisaki bookshop has been in her family for three generations. It is the pride and joy of her uncle Satoru, who has devoted his life to the bookshop since his wife Momoko left him five years earlier.
When Takako's boyfriend reveals he's marrying someone else, she reluctantly accepts her eccentric uncle's offer to live rent-free in the tiny room above the shop. Hoping to nurse her broken heart in peace, Takako is surprised to encounter new worlds within the stacks of books lining the Morisaki bookshop.
As summer fades to autumn, Satoru and Takako discover they have more in common than they first thought. The Morisaki bookshop has something to teach them both about life, love, and the healing power of books.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.
My Review: A book about books, and a bookshop, and the gentle art of connecting to others in the broken places life inflicts on us? A non-reader learning the power of books, and stories, to help and heal and bring us together? Sign me up!
You get all of that in this internationally bestselling novel. It is exactly correctly marketed, and aimed directly at the book-gollum that lurks in your #Booksgiving circle...the mid-teens niece who gobbles the usual suspects of YA fiction, the later tween granddaughter who needs a fresh subject to care passionately about. The reader who is also a bookaholic is likely to get less from it than a newer reader, as this is largely well-traveled territory for most of us over a certain age; still enjoyable, certainly, and so short that it's a long sitting of reading.
I've just been here before quite often. Moods and atmosphere make for fun experiences of reading and Jimbocho, in a few deft strokes feels real. Why then am I recommending it for your teen bookeaters? It's...fine. It's not more than fine, but it's solidly...fine. I reserve phrases like "good enough" to damn with faint praise. This is..fine. Sitting around with one's less than riveting relatives of a Yuletide eve, this is the best kind of read to have, and so to give to someone who's in that situation.
Coping with heartbreak is always going to appeal to younger audiences. They experience so much of it. The nature of Takako's dumping by her pretty rotten boyfriend is going to appeal; the nature of Satoru and Motoko's estrangement will certainly raise a lot of tissues.
Finding Family within one's family is a rare and wonderful experience. I think the story is a hit around the world for a very clear reason. Get it into the right hands and it will make the Yuletide bright, shiny, and bearable.
The Publisher Says: The moving international sensation about new beginnings, human connection, and the joy of reading.
Hidden in Jimbocho, Tokyo, is a booklover's paradise. On a quiet corner in an old wooden building lies a shop filled with hundreds of second-hand
Show More
books.Twenty-five-year-old Takako has never liked reading, although the Morisaki bookshop has been in her family for three generations. It is the pride and joy of her uncle Satoru, who has devoted his life to the bookshop since his wife Momoko left him five years earlier.
When Takako's boyfriend reveals he's marrying someone else, she reluctantly accepts her eccentric uncle's offer to live rent-free in the tiny room above the shop. Hoping to nurse her broken heart in peace, Takako is surprised to encounter new worlds within the stacks of books lining the Morisaki bookshop.
As summer fades to autumn, Satoru and Takako discover they have more in common than they first thought. The Morisaki bookshop has something to teach them both about life, love, and the healing power of books.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.
My Review: A book about books, and a bookshop, and the gentle art of connecting to others in the broken places life inflicts on us? A non-reader learning the power of books, and stories, to help and heal and bring us together? Sign me up!
You get all of that in this internationally bestselling novel. It is exactly correctly marketed, and aimed directly at the book-gollum that lurks in your #Booksgiving circle...the mid-teens niece who gobbles the usual suspects of YA fiction, the later tween granddaughter who needs a fresh subject to care passionately about. The reader who is also a bookaholic is likely to get less from it than a newer reader, as this is largely well-traveled territory for most of us over a certain age; still enjoyable, certainly, and so short that it's a long sitting of reading.
I've just been here before quite often. Moods and atmosphere make for fun experiences of reading and Jimbocho, in a few deft strokes feels real. Why then am I recommending it for your teen bookeaters? It's...fine. It's not more than fine, but it's solidly...fine. I reserve phrases like "good enough" to damn with faint praise. This is..fine. Sitting around with one's less than riveting relatives of a Yuletide eve, this is the best kind of read to have, and so to give to someone who's in that situation.
Coping with heartbreak is always going to appeal to younger audiences. They experience so much of it. The nature of Takako's dumping by her pretty rotten boyfriend is going to appeal; the nature of Satoru and Motoko's estrangement will certainly raise a lot of tissues.
Finding Family within one's family is a rare and wonderful experience. I think the story is a hit around the world for a very clear reason. Get it into the right hands and it will make the Yuletide bright, shiny, and bearable.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Craftybilda
Well written, a simple story, easy read and entertaining
LibraryThing member classyhomemaker
Wow, this was exceptionally bad.
At times I thought maybe it just translated bad... Like maybe this award-winning story really was fantastic in the Japanese but this translator was merely 10 years old so I should give him some credit. But no, I think the story is just bad. Unless the author is 10
I'm usually a sucker for a book about a bookshop and that's why I picked this one up at Barnes and Noble a few days ago. I think it's important to read works by people from cultures very different from me and for that, I give this book 1-star. I appreciate the opportunity to read books translated from other languages. I appreciate that people will do the work of translation. But this book sucks and there's just no getting around that.
There is no story, no plot. There is no character development. At. All. Takako is the flattest character I've encountered lately and her interactions with her aunt and uncle grossed me right out. He is way too creepily attached, she (aunt) is just slightly less creepy because she is not so attached. Takako lets life happen to her and slumps like a pile of regurgitated phlegm at every opportunity.
So I wondered... maybe all the beautiful, award-winning, magical nuances are just lost in translation. But then I get to chapter 3 and realize. Nope. It still just sucks. Chapter 3 is the climactic turning point at which angsty 16-year-old teenage boy writing turns to obnoxious, middle-school kid picking his nose and not showering for a week writing.
Well, that's about all I got for tonight. If you thought this review was stupid, wait 'til you read this book.
At times I thought maybe it just translated bad... Like maybe this award-winning story really was fantastic in the Japanese but this translator was merely 10 years old so I should give him some credit. But no, I think the story is just bad. Unless the author is 10
Show More
years old --- in which case I'd say, keep going, buddy! I'm usually a sucker for a book about a bookshop and that's why I picked this one up at Barnes and Noble a few days ago. I think it's important to read works by people from cultures very different from me and for that, I give this book 1-star. I appreciate the opportunity to read books translated from other languages. I appreciate that people will do the work of translation. But this book sucks and there's just no getting around that.
There is no story, no plot. There is no character development. At. All. Takako is the flattest character I've encountered lately and her interactions with her aunt and uncle grossed me right out. He is way too creepily attached, she (aunt) is just slightly less creepy because she is not so attached. Takako lets life happen to her and slumps like a pile of regurgitated phlegm at every opportunity.
So I wondered... maybe all the beautiful, award-winning, magical nuances are just lost in translation. But then I get to chapter 3 and realize. Nope. It still just sucks. Chapter 3 is the climactic turning point at which angsty 16-year-old teenage boy writing turns to obnoxious, middle-school kid picking his nose and not showering for a week writing.
Well, that's about all I got for tonight. If you thought this review was stupid, wait 'til you read this book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member labfs39
One day twenty-five year old Takako is stunned when her boyfriend announces over dinner that he is getting married. It doesn't sound like a proposal. Come to find out, he has been in a relationship with another woman at their workplace since before they began dating. But don't worry, they can still
I enjoy books about books and was looking forward to a light novel about readers. Unfortunately this one was even lighter than I expected, and my ignorance of modern Japanese authors made it difficult for me to appreciate the book talk. There is a sudden shift midway through the book, and the second half takes place a year and a half later with the return of her uncle's estranged wife. It felt like two stories cobbled together. Although the book didn't work for me, it was an inoffensive easy read, and not a bad way to spend a couple of hours. I appreciated the translator's note, which listed which books mentioned in the novel are available in translation.
Show More
see each other. Horrified, she quits her job and holes up in her apartment, sleeping thirteen hours a day. As her savings run low, she moves into a room above her uncle's bookshop, in exchange for opening the store in the mornings. Slowly she comes out of her depression, discovers the joys of reading, and reconnects with her uncle whom she hadn't seen in ten years.I enjoy books about books and was looking forward to a light novel about readers. Unfortunately this one was even lighter than I expected, and my ignorance of modern Japanese authors made it difficult for me to appreciate the book talk. There is a sudden shift midway through the book, and the second half takes place a year and a half later with the return of her uncle's estranged wife. It felt like two stories cobbled together. Although the book didn't work for me, it was an inoffensive easy read, and not a bad way to spend a couple of hours. I appreciated the translator's note, which listed which books mentioned in the novel are available in translation.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookworm12
I loved the descriptions of bookstores, falling in love with reading, & sharing your favorite novel. Some things felt like they were lost in translation. I didn’t feel much of an emotional connection to the main characters, but some of that might have been a cultural difference. It seemed like
“I don’t think it really matters whether you know a lot about books or not. That said, I don’t know that much myself. But I think what matters far more with a book is how it affects you.”
“It's only in secondhand books that you can savor encounters like this, connections that transcend time. And that's how I learned to love the secondhand bookstore that handled these books, our Morisaki Bookshop. I realized how precious a chance I'd been given, to be part of that little place, where you can feel the quiet flow of time.”
Show More
the book headed in a very different direction in the second half. Definitely still enjoyed it, but I was wishing for something I couldn’t put my finger on.“I don’t think it really matters whether you know a lot about books or not. That said, I don’t know that much myself. But I think what matters far more with a book is how it affects you.”
“It's only in secondhand books that you can savor encounters like this, connections that transcend time. And that's how I learned to love the secondhand bookstore that handled these books, our Morisaki Bookshop. I realized how precious a chance I'd been given, to be part of that little place, where you can feel the quiet flow of time.”
Show Less
LibraryThing member RandyMetcalfe
This is a book of two halves. The first half follows the disappointment of Takako as her apparent love-life disintegrates before her eyes. She abandons her job and eventually takes refuge at the Morisaki Bookshop owned by her uncle. There she lives in a room above the shop and slowly recharges her
The second half of the book is centred on Takako’s uncle, Satoru, whose wife Momoko had left him five years earlier. Her sudden reappearance sends shockwaves through the whole used-bookstore community. Satoru enlists his niece’s help in ferreting out both why Momoko left and why she came back, and, more important, whether she is back for good.
This second story is ultimately both very sad and heartwarming. So be prepared for tears and joy. Such sentimentality is perhaps not unusual in Japanese popular fiction and no doubt explains why this book was such a success in Japan.
Gently recommended.
Show More
batteries under the care of her very kind uncle and his eclectic set of devoted customers. Once she is able to confront her deceitful “boyfriend” she is well on her way to recovery.The second half of the book is centred on Takako’s uncle, Satoru, whose wife Momoko had left him five years earlier. Her sudden reappearance sends shockwaves through the whole used-bookstore community. Satoru enlists his niece’s help in ferreting out both why Momoko left and why she came back, and, more important, whether she is back for good.
This second story is ultimately both very sad and heartwarming. So be prepared for tears and joy. Such sentimentality is perhaps not unusual in Japanese popular fiction and no doubt explains why this book was such a success in Japan.
Gently recommended.
Show Less
LibraryThing member dono421846
A very pleasant story. Part I is the better, as it focuses on the bookshop itself, and how the discovery of reading (rather too miraculously) alters the disposition of the sullen young lady who has taken refuge in her uncle's place of business. The rest of the book devotes its attention to the
Show More
uncle's missing wife, leaving the bookshop as a hazy background setting with no further influence on the characters or the plot. Show Less
Original publication date
2010